Pile fabric



PILE FABRIC Filed July 24, 1958 United 2,997,075 Patented Aug. 22, 19612,997,075 PILE FABRIC Henry F. Nowicki, Norristown, Pa., assignor toJames Lees and Sons Company, Bridgeport, Pa., a corporation ofPennsylvania Filed .Iuly 24, 1958, Ser. No. 750,676 4 Claims. (Cl.139-402) This invention relates to pile fabrics and more particularly tothe method of weaving a velvet pile fabric with profile pile wires toachieve novel effects.

It has been found that an unexpectedly desirable and pleasing pilefabric effect may be achieved by planting differently colored yarns on awarp beam and controlling the weaving of the different colors overseries of undulating out-of-phase pile wires to provide a self-tonefabric. The invention will be described in conjunction with a one shotvelvet fabric suitable for rugs and carpets. It will be understood,however, that it may be used equally with Wilton, Brussels, or tapestryweaves.

A primary object of the invention, therefore, is to provide a novelmanner for controlling the pile height of a pile fabric to provide aself-tone effect by correlating gradual differences in pile height withcorresponding differences in color, yarn weight, yarn twist, 'and typesof constituent fibers.

A further object of the invention is to weave alternately colored pilewarps over warpwise aligned crests and valleys in successive series ofundulating or profile pile wires.

Further objects will be apparent from the specication and drawings inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a warpwise section of a pile fabric embodying the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 shows the draw for the fabric of FIG. l;

FIG. 3 illustrates a portion of a pair of adjacent pile wires,

FIG. 4 illustrates schematically the beam plant in accordance with thepresent invention showing the gradual change in yarn characteristicssuch as color, weight twist, etc.; and

FIG. 5 illustrates progressively the weaving of the pile warps over theout-of-phase pile wires.

The invention comprises essentially the provision of a set of pile wiresin which alternate pairs or alternate individual wires have undulationson their top edges which are out of phase with each other. Where theundulations slope a self-tone color or other characteristic of the yarnhaving a striking visual contrast effect is provided when the colors orother visual characteristics of the yarn are gradually shaded from highto low on the wires and vice-versa.

A pile fabric which, for example, comprises a plurality of double wefts10, 10, opposed chain warps 11, 11, and pairs of pile warps 12 and 13,is formed by weaving the face pile warps 12 and 13 over pile wires 14and 15 in pairs or singles. Where the pile warps 12 and 13 arestaggered, that is, weaving under alternate shots 10, it is desirable toemploy identical wires 14 and out-of-phase wires 15.

The undulations in the wires (FIG. 3) comprise crests 16 and valleys 17generally following a sine curve. The wire 15 has identical crests andvalleys 16 and 17 except that they are 180 out of phase with the crestsand valleys 16 and 17 of wire 14. The face yarns 12 and 413 are ofcontrasting appearance and the weftwise location of the colors or othervisual characteristics of maximum contrast are designated at positions 4and l in FIG. 4. Proceeding weftwise on the beam 20, the shading of thecolors varies in accordance with the plant from light to dark andvice-versa. In drawing the pile yarns through the loom heddles the mostdesirable effect is achieved by aligning the darkest shade or color 4with the maximum portion of the crests and valleys '16 and 17 on wires14 and 15. Alternative ways of drawing may be employed. For example, thedark yarns Z1, 21 shown at 4 in FIG. 4 may be drawn to weave overaligned crests and valleys in alternate wires such as shown in FIGURE 5.Intermediate aligned crests and valleys on the wires will have thelightest color or shade 1. In any event the desired effect is achievedwhen the weftwise gradation on each wire follows the ycontour of thewire so that the darkest yarns 21, 21 weave over the wire at the maximumhigh or low portions, namely, the crests and valleys, and the lightestor contrasting colored yarns 22, 22 weave over different wires in thesame way. Obviously such an arrangement produces an in-phaserelationship weftwise ou each wire when 'comparing color or othergradation and wire undulation. If desired, this relationship on eachwire may be out of phase so that instead of the dark yarns 21, 21 alwaysappearing at the crests 16 on each wire, the plant on the beam may bearranged so that the light and dark yarns are also out of phase thusalternating from crest to crest on each wire.

In addition to the above relationship of the yarns on each individualwire which is controlled by the harness draw, the warpwise relationshipof the yarns from wire to wire may also be controlled so that twosimilar wires 15', 15 in FIG. 5 are inserted successively but the yarnon each of these wires is out of phase so that dark yarns 21, 21 weaveover the crest 16 in wire 15 but the lighter or contrasting yarns 22, 22weave over the crests 16 in wire 15.

As shown clearly in FIG. 5, the dark stippling or shading of yarns 21,21 gradually diminishes weftwise so that in all transverse loop rowsthere is a continuing gradation between the light and the dark colorwhich, in the case of the low pile, is masked between adjoining highloops in the weftwise row. Where the pile yarns 12 and 13 are staggeredin each dent or in other dents, I prefer t0 use the wires 14 in pairs sothat staggered high loops 23, 23 will be formed on adjacent wires andstaggered low loops 24, 24 are formed on weftwise aligned valleys inadjacent pairs.

The overall appearance of the fabric gives a -gradual gradation inappearance both warpwise and weftwise, and it will be understood that byjudicious planting of contrasting colored face pile yarns in the yarnsupply such as a beam, as well as the use of undulating pile wires, someof which are 180 out of phase with other wires, it is possible toprovide a very novel and interesting range of effects in a pile carpet.The phase relationship of the wire undulations and the phaserelationship of the gradations both warpwise and weftwise enables acomplete masking of certain yarns to entirely change the appearance ofthe fabric. It will also be understood that the actual pile height ofthe loops will be just the reverse of those shown in FIGURE 5 since thehigh loops in the preceding row are pulled down when a succeeding wireis withdrawn. This fact, however, has no bearing upon the presentinvention because the designer realizes that a consideration of the pileloops when on the wires must be connected for the warpwise distance ofone or more wires after the wires are withdrawn. Furthermore, thecontrast in the yarns may be due to features or characteristics otherthan color, such as weight, twist, and constituent fibers.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

l. The method of weaving a pile fabric which comprises the steps ofraising a series of pile yarns having weftwise gradated characteristicsover an undulating pile wire so that points of maximum gradation are inalignment with points of maximum undulation on the wire,

and raising a second series of gradated characteristic pile yarns over asucceeding undulating Wire the yarns in the second series being gradatedout of undulating phase weftwise with the yarns in the rst series.

2. The method of claim 1 in which the undulations on the second wire areout of phase with the undulations of the rst wire.

3. The method of claim 1 in which the undulations on the second Wire arein phase with the undulations of the first wire.

4. The method of claim l in which `the gradated characteristics of theyarn are color gradations, and the wires are arranged in pairs, theundulations of each pair of wires are in phase, but the undulations ofthe pairs of wires are out of phase and said color gradations are out ofphase on the wires of each pair.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

